|
American Muslim Group Meets with State Department to Discuss Israeli Violence
 |
| Israel continues its aggression against the Palestinians |
By Neveen A. Salem
WASHINGTON, Jan. 11 (IslamOnline) - American Muslims for Jerusalem (AMJ) organized a delegation that met Friday with U.S. State Department officials from the Office of Israeli and Palestinian Affairs.
Members of the Washington-based group met Deputy Director Stuart Seldowitz and Political Officer Donald Blome.
"It was a constructive meeting, and we hope to see the Administration play a more forceful role in ending Israeli violence against Palestinians," said AMJ Executive Director Khalid Turaani.
"If the Israelis think that demolishing homes and killing children will bring them peace and security, it will bring them neither," added Turaani. "Peace and security will come only with an end to Israel's military occupation."
AMJ presented the State Department with autopsy reports and doctor's testimony regarding the three Palestinian children killed by Israeli military forces in the Gaza Strip last week.
Autopsy reports indicate the boys suffered extensive wounds from an exploding tank shell and it appeared that two of the three had been run over by a tank.
A medical examination determined that the Israelis ran over one of the boys, 15-year-old Ahmed Muhammad Hasan Banat, while he was still alive. Autopsy reports also indicate that Israeli authorities performed full autopsies on the three boys before returning their bodies to the Palestinian Authority.
Seldowitz informed the delegation that the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv had requested information on the case from Israeli authorities.
"We take questions of how Israel has responded to the situation and the human rights implications of IDF behavior very seriously," he said.
He noted that the U.S. government has made a constant series of inquiries to the highest levels of the Israeli government on issues related to excessive use of force and human rights violations.
According to Seldowitz, Israeli authorities claim the boys were attempting to sneak into a closed area of Gaza in order to visit a friend. The Israelis also claim that they suspected the boys might have been planting bombs.
Israel admits to firing at the boys from a tank and say the soldiers may have also used smaller weapons. Their report indicated that "the mistake" was fully reported in the Israeli media.
Officials from the U.S. embassy note that it is somewhat routine for Israel to perform an autopsy in cases like this, explaining the delay in returning the boys' bodies.
They also note that the Israeli Ministry of Health recently dismissed Israel's chief pathologist on charges of removing organs during autopsies without consent. They do not assert that that was the case with these three Palestinian children.
AMJ also raised the issue of the 50-70 Palestinian homes demolished by Israeli occupation forces that invaded Rafah Thursday.
"This act of collective punishment leaves more than 500 destitute Palestinians homeless in the harsh winter months, making them relive the horror of dispossession yet again," AMJ stated.
The delegation also discussed the urgent need for international intervention to protect Palestinian civilians from Israel's brutal 35-year military occupation of the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip.
At a State Department briefing earlier Friday, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell offered no additional comments regarding the U.S.'s stance on the demolition of the homes in Rafah.
"If it's just the destruction of civilian housing as retaliation, then Richard spoke to that [on Thursday]," said Powell, referring to remarks by State Department spokesman Richard Boucher.
At a U.S. State Department press briefing Thursday, however, Boucher indicated that no official statement of condemnation of the Israeli action had been given, although he reiterated the U.S. position denouncing house demolitions in general.
"First and foremost, it's important to remember the responsibility of Chairman Arafat to take action against violence," said Boucher. "At the same time, we've always said that we don't think demolitions contribute to restoration of calm or an end to violence… and that remains our position on this particular situation."
When asked if the Israelis had been specifically notified of this position, he said, "The Israelis are quite aware of our position on demolitions, and I'm sure in any conversations that we had about the matter we would state that position."
"The State Department's meager criticism is much like saying 'eating jelly filled donuts doesn't contribute to the restoration of calm or an end to violence,'" Turaani told IslamOnline.
"Essentially, Boucher said nothing regarding the 500 people left destitute as a result of Israel's actions. These refugees are a threat to no one's security and are guilty of no crime," he continued.
|
